Car-coupling



(No Mode1.) I

C. HARRINGTON.

GAR GUUPLING.

No. 459,547. Patented Sept. 15,1891@ UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

CHARLES l-IARRINGTON, OF BARTLETT, TEXAS.

eAR-couPLlNG. l

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 459,547, datedSeptember 15', 1891.

Application filed June 9, 1891. Serial No. 395,712. (No model.)

To all whom t may concern,.-

Be it known that I, CHARLES 'HARRTNGTON, a citizen of the United States,residing at Bartlett, in the county of Williamson and State of Texas,have invented a new and useful Oar-Coupler, of which the following is aspecification. f

This invention relates to car-couplings, and more particularly to thatclass thereof known as swing-pin, and the object of the same is toeffect improvements in devices of this character.

To this end the invention consists of the specific details ofconstruction hereinafter more fully described and claimed, and asillustrated on the sheet of drawings, wherein- Figure 1 is a perspectiveview of the end of a car with my improved car-coupling attached, showinga link locked therein. Fig. 2 is an enlarged central longitudinalsection of the draw-head with the pin omitted. Fig. 3 is a similarsection showing the pin ready t-o receive the link. Fig. 4 is a similarview with the link locked in place. Fig. 5 is an enlarged perspectivedetail of the catch and pin.

Referring to the said drawings, the letter C designates the body of acar, in eyes I in the end of which is journaled a horizontal rod R,having handles H at its ends and having a forwardly-proj ecting arm A atits center.

D is the draw-head, having the usual mouth M and vertical pin-opening Vadapted to receive the ordinary coupling-pin for engaging the link L;but P is the pin which I use in connection with the present invention.

All the parts above mentioned are of the usual construction, with theexception set forth in the following specific description.

The pin P comprises t-he pin proper 1, Whose upper end is connected byachain N withthe front end of the arm A on the horizontal rod R. The bodyof this pin. passes through a catch 2, as seen in Fig. 5, from which itmay be removed in case either part becomes broken or worn, and thiscatch has a transverse pin 3 and a rounded upper edge 4, terminating ina shoulder 5 at its front end and a tongue 6 at its rear end, all asbest seen in said figure.

The above-described catch and pin work within the body of the draw-headwhich is open at its top and, at each side of this opening rises acurved bracket 10, havin g an inverted- V-shapedslot 11, with a smalloffset 12 at its front end, within which slot the transverse pin 3works.

13 is a shoulder formed at the front end of the opening in the top ofthe draw-head, and the shoulder 5 rests upon the upper side of the pin 1against the lower side of this shoulder, according to the position ofparts.

14 is a curved guide in which the tongue 6 moves in the operation of thedevice, and 15 is the shoulder at the front end of this guide, againstwhich the pin rests when the link is locked in place. The opening 16extends from the mouth M backwardly to and across the guide 14, all asbest seen in Fig. 2.

In operation, the parts standing in the position shown in Fig. 3, withthe transverse pin 3 in the rear end of the slots 11 and the pin 1resting beneath the shoulder 13, if now the linkL is forced into themouth M it strikes the body of the catch 2 and turns it to the rear,thereby moving the tongue 6 up the curved guide 14. I should have saidthat the rounded edge 4 of the catch'2 is eccentric to the transversepin 3, and hence when the catch rnoves to the rear in the mannerdescribed this rounded edge, bearing against the walls of the guide 14,cansesthe catch to rise bodily within the draw-head, whereby thetransverse pin 3 is moved upwardlyin the rear side of the slots 11. Thepin 1 is meanwhile moving downwardlyfrom the shoulder 13 toward theshoulder 15, and just at the moment when its lower end passes over thecorner of the latter shoulder the transverse pin 3 passes over the angleof the slots 11 and the entire catch and pin drops to the position shownin Fig. 4, the pin 1 being then, of course, through the link. The tongue6 by striking the upper end ofthe curved guide 14 prevents a dislocationof parts in uncoupling, Which movement is effected in the followingInanner: The parts being in the position shown in Fig. 4, if one of thehandles H is turned in the proper direction to draw upwardly on thechain N with a sudden pull the entire catch and pin will be raisedbodily within the draw-head until the transverse pin passes over theangle of the slots 1l and the piu passes over the corner of the shoulder15, and the pull on the chain N at this time drawing the catch to therear the latter falls by its own gravity to the position shown IDO inFig. 3, when the link L is free to draw out. The offsets 12, to whichreference was above made, are preferably, although not necessarily,provided at the front ends of the slots 11, and when the link is lockedin place the transverse pin 3 draws into these offsets by the tension onthe link, as seenl in dotted lines in Fig. 2. It will be obvious that ineither position of partsan ordinary couplingpin could be passed throughthe vertical pinopening V, and this is especially serviceable when theparts are damaged by breakage or wear.

The above-described device possesses many advantages which practicalusage will develop and which need not be elaborated here, and I do notlimit myself to the exact details of construction, as considerablechange may be made therein without departing from the spirit of myinvention.

In Fig. 3 is shown in dotted lines a standard 20, which may be removablyseated in the upper end of the pin-opening V or may rise from thedraw-head at any suitable point forward of the brackets 10, and in theupper end of this standard, on a pivot 21, is mounted a pawl 22, whoseweighted inner end is adapted to engage the shoulder 5 on the catch 2.This device is useful when it is desired to switch the cars withouthaving them automatically couple, as is frequently the case, and it willbe evident that when the parts are in the position shown the link L,when driven into the draw-head, cannot turn the catch to move the pin 1through the link, because the pawl 22 prevents.

What is claimed new is 1. In a carcoupling, the combination, with adraw-head having an open top, a bracket at each side of the openingtherein having an inverted-V-shaped slot, and a shoulder 15 beneath theopening 16 within the draw-head, of a catch located between saidbrackets, a transverse pin through said catch engaging the slotstherein, a coupling-pin through the catch at right angles to thetransverse pin and adapted to engage said shoulder, and means foroperating the catch, as set forth.

2. In a car-coupling, the combination, with a draw-head having an opentop, brackets at the sides of said opening, each having aninvertedVshaped slot with a forwardly-extending oifset at its front end,and a shoulder 13 above and 15 below the longitudinal opening 16 in thedraw-head, of a catch located between said brackets, a transverse pinthrough the catch engaging said slots, a coupling-pin the open top andhaving a shoulder 5, a pin depending from said catch and engagingbeneath the upper shoulder 13 when the pin is raised, the pin engagingthe lower shoulder 15 when it is lowered and the shoulder 5 on the catch.at this time engaging the upper shoulder 13, and means for moving thecatch, as set forth.

4. In a car-coupling, the combination, with a draw-head having an opentop, a bracket at each side thereof havinganinverted-V-shaped slot, anda curved guide 14: at the rear end of the longitudinal opening in thedraw-head, of a catch located between said brackets, a transverse pintherein engaging said slots, a pin depending from the catch, a tongue 6at the rear end of the catch engaging said guide, and means foroperating the catch, as set forth.

5. In a car-coupling, the combination, with a draw-head having an opentop, a bracket at each side thereof having aninverted-Vshaped slot, anda curved guide at the rear end of the longitudinal opening in thedraw-head, of a catch located between said brackets, a transverse pintherein engaging said slots, a pin depending from the catch, the curvedupper and rear face of the catch being eccentric to said transverse pinand bearing against said guide, and means for raising the catch, as setforth.

6. In a car-coupling, the combination, with a draw-head having an opentop, a bracket at each sidethereof having an inverted-V-shaped slot, acurved guide at the rear end of the longitudinal opening in thedraw-head, a shoulder 15 in the bottom of said opening, and a shoulder13 at the front end of the open top, of a catch located between saidbrackets, a transverse pin therein engaging said slots, a pin dependingfrom thecatch and respectively engaging the upper and lower shoulderswhen it is raised or lowered, the curved upper and rear face of thecatch being eccentric to the transverse pin and bearing against saidguide, a crank-shaft journaled across the end of the car and having aprojecting arm, and a chain connecting said arm with the catch, as setforth.

7. In a car-coupling, the combination, withy a draw-head having an opentop and a vertical pin-opening intersecting its longitudinal opening acatch in said open top having a shoulder 5, a pin depending from saidcatch, and means for operating the latter, of a standard removablyseated in the upper end of said pin-opening, and a pivoted pawl in saidstandard engaing the shoulder on the catch when the latter is inposition to hold the pin raised, as hereinbefore set forth.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own I have hereto affixedmy signature in presence of two witnesses.

CHARLES HARRINGTON.

Witnesses:

J. S. PoYNoR, W. W. WALToN.

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